Finding the right wireless earphones in a vast market with many options can be challenging. Thousands of earpiece models are available from renowned brands with different price tags. Their features and specifications may vary according to their price and brands, and you need to be a perfectionist to pick the perfect pair that meets your budget and needs. To wrap up your search, focus on a brand you already know and trust. TOZO is a long-lasting earbud manufacturer, and we’ve reviewed several of them, including TOZO G1, TOZO T12, and many others. Today, we’ll examine TOZO NC2 Hybrid Active Noise Cancelling Wireless Earbuds.
These Active Noise-Cancelling buds offer three-layer noise reduction and impressively long battery life. The outer microphone detects external sounds and counters with equal anti-noise to cancel environmental noise up to over 35. Furthermore, the inward-facing mic listens inside the ear canal to catch internal sounds.
They are designed primarily for long-term comfort, as the shape of NC2 perfectly fits the curve of the inner contour of the ear. TOZO NC2 boasts an IPX6 waterproof nano-coating, efficiently shielding it from sweat and water. You can also enjoy upgraded fast wireless charging, which fully charges the rechargeable case in less than 2 hours.
In-ear detection and touch controls work with better-than-average dependability. The Transparency Mode can enhance the voice frequency band and improve the surrounding sound's insight. Bluetooth 5.2 ensures a fast and stable connection with your device.
The headsets and case are lightweight and cheap-feeling, but they are better than expected for the low price. Compared to the latest generation, they are large and overhang from the ears, rarely catching on my hoodie. There is no app support to turn off in-ear auto-play, mainly in the same range; that is a drawback.
Earbuds Best
Overview of TOZO NC2 Earpieces
TOZO NC2 offers a hybrid 3-layer ANC to reduce external noise and a Transparency Mode to listen to your surroundings. To learn more details, let’s briefly discuss the product overview.
- Hybrid active noise cancellation removes noise to provide immersive sound. It reduces lower-frequency noises, such as those from busy offices and aviation environments, which helps you focus on what you want to hear.
- Experience immersive sound with reduced environmental noise by more than 35 dB.
- The Transparency Mode can boost the voice frequency band and improve the perception of the surroundings while listening to music.
- TOZO acoustic experts focus on precise auditory tuning with high stereo sound quality and accurately adjust every detail.
- Their shape perfectly fits the inner contour of the ear curve, with the ergonomic design to offer an impressive fit.
- The earbuds and charging case have an IPX6 waterproof rating, which protects them from waterdrops and sweat. However, they are not recommended to be submerged or used underwater while swimming.
- The faster wireless charging ensures the convenience of charging the case in less than two hours.
- These earphones support advanced Bluetooth 5.2 and A2DP, AVRCP, HFP, and HSP to provide in-call stereo sound. The latest Bluetooth connection significantly improves transmission speed and offers a low-latency listening experience.
- The earpieces’ optical sensor technology senses when they’re in your ears to play the music and pauses when you take them out.
- TOZO claims that NC2 headsets can last more than 10 hours of playtime from a single charge and 42 hours with the case.
- Moreover, the high-precision contact sensor, optimized for sports occasions or daily use, detects the wearer’s status in real time.
- When you pick up both buds from the carry case, they will connect automatically to the last paired device.
Features of TOZO NC2
TOZO NC2 boasts powerful bass, clear treble, and a mellow midrange with hybrid active noise cancellation. The section below discusses the buds’ features and specifications in detail.
| Brand | TOZO |
| Model Name | NC2 |
| Form Factor | In-Ear |
| Connectivity Technology | Wireless |
| Bluetooth Connectivity | Bluetooth 5.2 |
| Noise Cancellation | Hybrid 3-layer Active Noise Cancellation |
| Noise Reduction Level | More Than 35dB |
| Modes and Sensors | Transparency Mode, Optical Sensors Tech |
| Playtime | Over 10 Hours of Playtime |
| Playtime with the Case | 32 Hours |
| Total Playtime | 42 Hours |
| Earphone Battery Capacity | 50mAh*2 |
| Charging Box Battery Capacity | 500mAh |
| Earphones Charging Time | 1.5 Hours |
| Case Charging Time | 2.5 Hours |
| Waterproof Rating | IPX6 |
| Wireless Charging | Yes |
| Frequency Range | 20Hz~20,000Hz |
| Charging Port | Type-c |
| Date First Available | October 15, 2020 |
| Country of Origin | United States |
| Price | $39.99 |
Design and Comfort
Like other models from popular brands on Amazon, the TOZO NC2 earphones have an impressive look. While the mate-black charging case is slightly larger than AirPods Pro, it is smart enough to fit in your jeans pocket easily. Four LED lights indicate the case’s remaining battery life on the front side. A USB Type-C charging port is at the bottom of the case. Alternatively, you can put the case on the wireless charging pad to make the charging capability more convenient.
The bottom dust plug design keeps the charging port neat and sealed when not in use. It is designed with users’ comfort in mind, and its ergonomic design snugly fits my ears without causing discomfort. As discussed above, the earbuds are larger than the latest generation of wireless buds and bulge slightly from the ears. The carry case is large enough to accommodate the long earbud stems but compact overall. Furthermore, the lid has a strong magnet to stay closed with little flex.
After some days of use, the hinge loosens and won’t effortlessly stay open to hold up the charging case. The case material is relatively smooth and slippery plastic, which may distress butter fingers. However, the plastic remains robust against superficial scratches. Jabra Elite 4 is a reliable alternative, which doesn’t have perfect Active Noise Cancellation but isolates quite well.
You will receive six ear tips in different sizes: extra small, small, medium, large, extra-large, and double extra-large. Suitable earphone sizes are essential to noise comfort, sound quality, and cancellation experience. So, try different sizes, and note that you need to use different sizes for your left and right ears. The compact earpiece shells are small and designed to be as comfortable as possible.
Playtime
TOZO NC2 earbuds have dual charging features, supporting wired and wireless charging, making them convenient. For wired charging, you can find a USB Type-C charging cable. The charging case has four LED indicators that show the charging status. Four LED lights with an on status indicate that the case is fully charged.
The headsets allow 10 hours of playtime with active noise cancellation. Remember that this brand’s battery life claim can be obtained with the 50% volume and default settings. Without the ANC, it plunges to 7 to 8 hours. Optical sensor technology detects wavelength and frequency to help the pair of earpieces save battery power.
However, the charging case stores enough power to offer 32 hours of playtime. The case can be recharged three times before the battery needs to be recharged. Users can enjoy up to 42 hours of playtime, which is enough for around two days. These are above-average scores for affordable noise-canceling buds, and it’s certainly enough juice for everyday use.
The earphones have a 50mAh battery, and the charging case has a 500mAh battery. With cable charging, the earphones take 1.5 hours to power up completely, and the case takes 1.7 hours. The fast charging gives 1.5 hours of playtime with just 10 minutes. I will give them 8 out of 10 points for battery performance because they deliver what TOZO claims.
In our standardized battery testing with Active Noise Cancellation, the battery lasted 7 hours and 13 minutes. A longer battery life means fewer charging cycles, likely prolonging the buds’ lifetime, which is suitable for ANC earphones.
Noise Cancellation
One of the top features of the TOZO NC2 earpieces is their noise-canceling capabilities. It could be better on the market, but it competes with several pricier premium brand offerings. When properly fitted, these earpieces isolate decently and tackle mainly very high-pitched noises. These earpieces offer a lot of filtering from the lowest-pitched noises through some relatively higher-pitched noises, like fans and washing machines. Noise-reducing filters are slightly uneven, leading to some external sounds reaching your ears partially, which feels odd. Irregular noise cancellation is not unique to the TOZO NC2; many Active noise-canceling products do the same thing.
Tapping the left bud, one can switch between the Ambient/Transparency Mode and the ANC feature. By default, the Active Noise Cancellation is off, and once you turn it on, you can’t turn it off again until you put the headsets in the case. This is the biggest negative point of these headphones. You can confirm the switching of functions with a short, unintrusive beep.
The noise reduction effect is strong for the price, and background noises, like darker electronic buzzing and even construction site sounds, are heavily isolated. Some external sounds can even become inaudible, and this reduction applies to both darker and brighter bass noises. Instead, noises from close by could be handled better.
While the brand takes away the brighter edge of sound effects and voices like mouse clicks and keyboard buttons, nearby sounds are still noticeable. The Ambient Mode or Transparency Mode is partially effective in some conditions. After activating the mode, you can clearly hear the traffic and nearby chatter while listening to music. The wind noise cancellation of the noise-canceling mid is inconsistent; sometimes, there is no wind noise, and sometimes, a breeze can sound loud.
Sound Quality
Like the look and feel, TOZO NC2 offers the perfect sound quality, with vivid upper mids and engaging bass. Moreover, the bass may not throw many of the darkest, deepest sub-bass tones in the mix, but the mid-bass recompense for it and stimulates joy. Hip-hop, pop, dance, and electronic music can be sure of a boost and huge mid-bass. It’s punchy enough to make you bob your head and tap your feet.
Upper mid-tones and brighter vocals like horns, violins, and cymbals have the same energy. Vocals sound clear and are somewhat in front of instruments, but not to the point where the audio becomes shallow or harsh. Only claps and cymbals (the common percussion instruments) can sound sharp or thin. Still, these headsets have a warm undertone because of the elevated lower-mid tones.
I couldn’t find any sensitivity or max SPL figures during my testing, but I achieved the ideal listening volume above average. It gives me plenty of room to spare so that the TOZO NC2 will get loud enough for every user. These earpieces have a balanced EQ to offer reasonably good sound quality. They are neither bass-heavy nor tinny but sit exactly in the middle. NC2 is a cut above what I’d expected for the price, as their hybrid ANC system is very effective. If you are a bass lover, you may enjoy tight and punchy bass with TOZO G1 Wireless Gaming Earbuds.
I detect some uneven channel balance, with the right bud receiving more highs and the left one playing more lows. Except for frequencies more than 5 kHz to 9 kHz and more than 10 kHz, the test unit plays back frequencies from 5 kHz up to 5dB louder on the left than on the right. The difference is not too much, and while some folks won’t even notice, this type of deviation is likely an outcome of the low production cost, as your mileage may vary.
Connectivity and Pairing
With Bluetooth v5.2, the upgrade to Bluetooth 5.0, you can connect TOZO NC2 earpieces to your device. The latest Bluetooth connection allows dual-channel connections; each bud will have its signal on compatible devices. Successive connection immediately occurs when you pop the earbuds out of the case. I also tried them with older devices, and they work fine with them.
Additionally, they have built-in optical sensors that can detect when they are inserted. When you remove them from your ears, they will automatically pause your music and resume it after insertion. Despite the firm Bluetooth connection with my iPhone over AAC, I still experience negligible latency when watching online videos.
It is not a distracting latency amount, but I experienced that voice and mouth gestures do not consistently match up. Similarly, latency remains delicate to predict in general terms, depending on variables like internet connection, device, and Bluetooth codec. Follow the steps to pair NC2 over Bluetooth.
After the initial pairing, the noise-cancelling headsets automatically connect to the previously paired device when you remove them from the box. Open the case cover, and the earpieces will power on automatically. Put the buds into the charging box and close the cover to power them off automatically.
For Bluetooth pairing, open the box, keep the buds in the case, and hold the power button for 3 seconds to force the earphones into pairing mode. Notably, the operation will not clear the previous Bluetooth pairing record. Enable Bluetooth in your device’s settings and flip the switch on the charging box. After activating the pairing state, open your device’s search function and connect it by clicking “TOZO-NC2.” TOZO lets you choose between listening to one or two buds at a time.
What is in the TOZO NC2 Box?
You can find the following items in the box:
- A pair of TOZO NC2 wireless earbuds
- Wireless Charging Case
- User Guide
- USB Type-C Cable
- Five pairs of ear tips (XS, S, M, L, XL)
- User Manual
Pros and Cons of TOZO NC2
Read the pros and cons of these earpieces to know about them before buying them.
Pros
- IPX6 Waterproof Rating
- 42 Hours of Playtime
- Wireless Charging
- Transparency Mode
Cons
- No Dedicated App for EQ Settings
- Average Noise Cancellation
FAQs About TOZO NC2
If you have doubts about TOZO NC2 earpieces, read this section to learn all about the product’s features.
